Presently, pallets are used for transportation of goods by various forms of transport. There are many different designs for such pallets, and the designs are usually suited to a specific industry or commercial need. This has resulted in a number of different designs, types and dimensions for pallets used in the various industries.
Typically, a pallet consists of two decks, one upper deck to carry the weight of the goods to be transported, and a lower deck, which provides structural support. Such a pallet may also include beams located between the two decks for further strengthening the pallet.
Due to the non-uniform design, with different shapes and sizes, there has been a problem with loading and/or unloading of pallets, along with problems in transportation and storage of the pallets and the transported goods. Pallets with upper and lower decks cannot be efficiently transported in bulk when empty, due to bulkiness of the stacked pallets. Further, many pallets (including wooden pallets) are designed to be used as one-way pallets, wherein such pallets are generally not returned to their point of origin. Such pallets are often destroyed after being used for only a few trips to transport goods.
The logistics of returning used pallets has become a concern in the transport industry. Using pallets once, or only a few times, is inefficient, wasteful and costly. Furthermore, inefficient handling of pallets leads to further costs and wastage.
Plastic pallets have been used in order to overcome some of the associated problems. Such plastic pallets may have a longer life. Further, due to the large volumes of pallet movement within retail, fast moving consumer goods and export markets, plastic pallets may provide superior functionality when compared with other pallets (for example, wooden pallets). Plastic pallets may mitigate inefficiencies and reduce costs associated with return logistics, whilst having the required functionality of a pallet for transporting goods.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome, or at least ameliorate, one or more of the above-mentioned problems. The present invention may also overcome, or at least ameliorate, other problems in the prior art.